Monday, December 04, 2006

Pre-pondering 2008...

Alright y’all, a bitch is tired as hell of all the “is she going to run?” and “will he put his hat in?” crazy talk going on right now. That shit encourages the type of political spin infused frenzy that got us stuck with the head asshole in charge we are currently stuck with!People need to pause, for the love of all that’s holy, and breathe a bit.

Come on now...let’s everybody calm the fuck down before someone pisses all over themselves.

This bitch is going to take as much time considering candidates as my ass spends considering any major long term commitment. If the current administration has taught me anything, it’s that 8 years can be long as hell!

My concern is that pundits and the masses are going to be looking at dumb ass shit or looking at important shit from a dumb ass perspective when assessing candidates..and we really can’t afford that.

For example…LikeabilityA good leader of a diverse population is going to have to piss everyone off a bit and have to be cool with it. This bitch wants to understand the president…wants to see that, even though I disagree, her or his notions aren’t insane or based in fear-mongering bigotry.

A bitch looks for a touch of asshole in leaders. Not Rumsfeldian assholia, mind you...that much asshole is dangerous as hell…but just enough asshole to say words like “no” and “are you out of your damned mind?” when necessary.

See, this bitch has long speculated that many of my fellow Americans voted for Scooter B. in 2000 because he seemed the type of person they’d like to share a beer with.

Now that most of those voters have realized that Scooter B. is that guy at the pub…you know, the one who seems kind of cool until you find out he lifted your wallet, spent all your money, tapes your phone calls, wrecked your car into your neighbor’s house and then kicked your dog…yeah, thaaaaat guy...now that most voters have realized that shit, they need to apply what they have learned.

My ass was watching PBS and they had a documentary on about Senator Robert Kennedy and I was struck by his presence, his ability to change and acknowledge that change happened…and his wicked smart grasp of all manner of shit.

It struck me that presidents used to represent a level of intelligence (hell, even the appearance of intelligence) that walked out the door with Reagan…flickered back for a bit with Clinton…and then was washed away with industrial strength bleach when Scooter B’s dumb ass came on board.

Oh, some knavish troll is sure to comment that Scooter B. went to Yale…cough…and Harvard Business School (ask C-Money for her thoughts of HBS grads if you want a good laugh) but anyone who has danced on the Ivy or Baby Ivy dance floor knows that legacy goes a long way, baby.

Don’t let that shit impress you. As my father used to say, money walks and bullshit talks.

Anyhoo, now that we have a chance to go at this shit again let’s look for someone who has demonstrated some intellectual capacity! Someone who knows where countries are on a map, who can tell you how the United Nations came to be, who quotes from the Constitution every now and then and who can give us some visionary speeches once a year.

Lawd knows this bitch has had enough of watching our front guy on the world stage as he makes an ass of himself whilst trying to sound decisive only to end up coming across like the dumb ass out of touch ignorant as hell blue blooded son of privilege that he is.

Sigh.People just don’t care about knowing shit anymore, but that’s another post.

Anyhoo, where was I?

We’ve got a long way to go before November 2008 and this bitch plans to sit back and watch as people talk themselves out of the job. There’s plenty of time left before my ass has to pick my horse…

12 comments:

I also saw that RFK documentary on PBS last week, and had the exact same thought. When was the last time you heard a politician effectively quoting his or her favorite poet? It would be nice to have some eloquence and intelligence back in the White House.

intelligence would be nice wouldn't it. i remember watching clinton on the daily show awhile back and thinking, "wow, he's really smart." and then i remembered, while he is smart, w put a whole new perspective on being able to put a complete sentence together.

I am in 100% agreement with you! I'd like our president to be really, really SMART, and an amazing diplomat. Why elect someone you'd want to party with? I want someone very smart and polished, who can represent our country with diplomacy...with an amazing command of words, not just the ability to giggle and push a button (BOOM!)

When we pick our horse we must first demand that that horse is ready to run with the needs of the people at heart. All across America tonight people will be meeting in living rooms in an organized effort to ensure the newly elected majority will do the work the voters sent them to do. If we do our work early, old school political activisim to make our voices heard, we can effect change. Speak up and speak out! That is Democracy in action!

Interesting. I'm teaching a course right now that's on a somewhat related topic. One of the things we cover is how people choose candidates and parties.

I'd note that you weight heavily on personal characteristics(assertiveness, trustworthiness, and smarts). Leaving aside the notion that one might choose other personal characteristics (such as your example of the affable "guy I'd have a beer with"), it's worth noting what you don't mention: neither issues, nor ascriptive attributes (such as gender or race).

This I find interesting, inasmuch as I suspect that while a lot of people _say_ they vote on the basis of issues they in fact don't (mainly because they either don't have enough information to make an "informed" choice on candidate stands on issues, or because they rely on poor information -- such as stereotypes and media-generated reputations for things like "maverick-ness").

Similarly, while a lot of people _say_ they don't vote on the basis of ascriptive characteristics, there's plenty of evidence that they in fact _do_ (usually using them as the basis for the stereotype-based "issue" inferences alluded to above -- witness Viguerie's recent foamy-mouthed and barely-concealed racist and sexist imprecations regarding a "Pelosi/Conyers/Rangel-led Congress").

Weighting heavily on personal characteristics -- or, if I may be so bold, looking for "character" in a candidate -- suggests to me that a lot of the ways in which academics (or the mainstream media) typically think about the Presidency, and about American democracy, simply don't match onto empirical reality. Academics think of the President in terms of being a party leader -- i.e., someone elected on the basis of their promises regarding issues. The media thinks of the President in terms of being a celebrity -- i.e., someone whom we like and adore, and whom we elect because we find their narrative (Camelot, "Sunshine in America," "chopping brush on the ranch" etc.) compelling.

You, however, seem to me to suggest that we ought to think of the President more in terms of their simple ability to get shit done. And if they aren't smart enough, or don't have enough backbone, or aren't reliable enough to manage the biggest damned bureaucracy this side of the UN without putting their filthy paws into the collective till, then we shouldn't even give their resume a second glance.

Would that more voters thought your way -- perhaps we might then have a prayer of _not_ electing an incompetent boob and all of his frat-boy bully boyfriends.

Well, darling, this bitch can tell you that we will have approximately 9 presidential candidates, including Clinton, Obama, Kerry, Edwards, Bayh, Vilsack, Richardson... And two more I can't think of off the top of my head but I know are out there, biding their precious time. Oh! Joe Biden! Eight... one more.

Also, darling, I was wondering if you had seen this shit! Who in the hell works two and a half days a week in this f*ing country, expects and gives themselves a pay raise other than Congress? If I didn't think these people smoked crack before, I know they smoke crack now. Talk about application of new knowledge...